After 100 Rejections, I Got Sucked Into My Own Rejected Draft

Episode 2 The Inheritance Trap: Lock with My Enemies（I）

Chapter 1

My father-in-law, Robert Harrison, passed away on an early autumn morning.

It was sudden, a heart attack. He didn't leave a single word.

At the funeral, as the eldest daughter-in-law, I ran around, organizing everything until I was on the verge of collapse. My husband, Ethan Harrison, just stood there numbly, letting his mother and brother circle the funeral hall like vultures catching the scent of blood.

My mother-in-law, Margaret, sobbed in a hoarse voice while yanking the diamond necklace, my grandmother's heirloom, off my neck and shoving it into her purse. "Robert's gone, and we'll need money for the family. I'll keep these safe for now."

My brother-in-law, Jake, a 30-year-old deadbeat who still lived off his parents, had red eyes, not from grief, but greed. His gaze darted between Robert's favorite Patek Philippe watch and the company seal in Ethan's hand.

I watched silently, my heart turning to ice.

Ethan and I had been married for eight years. I'd stood by him when he was a struggling nobody, all the way to his current position as Vice President of his father's construction firm, Harrison Builders. I'd thought we had love, had a bond.

But in the face of his family's greed, all of that felt as light as a feather.

Chapter 2

Just a week after the funeral, the lawyer arrived.

Margaret and Jake perked up immediately, shoving me and our six-year-old daughter, Lily, aside to crowd around him.

"Lawyer, what about my husband's inheritance? Isn't it all going to Ethan?" Margaret rubbed her hands together, her voice eager.

Ethan stared at the lawyer, his hands clenched tight. He needed this inheritance, to secure his position at the company, to pay off Jake's gambling debts.

The lawyer cleared his throat, adjusted his glasses, and read the will aloud in a formal tone.

The contents hit the living room like a bombshell.

Robert's bank accounts and securities, totaling about $2.3 million, would be split equally between Ethan and Jake.

But -

The two most valuable assets: the $10 million penthouse in downtown Manhattan and his 67% controlling stake in Harrison Builders, were to be inherited solely by his eldest daughter-in-law: me, Elena Carter.

I froze, staring at the lawyer in disbelief.

Margaret's face turned from red to purple. She jumped up, pointing a finger at me. "Impossible! This can't be true! Robert must have lost his mind! Leaving everything to an outsider? Elena, did you bewitch him? Did you drug my husband?"

Jake snapped out of his shock and lunged for the will. "It's a fake! Dad loved me the most, he'd never leave me with nothing!"

Ethan's face was paler than a corpse. He looked at me, no joy in his eyes, only shock, humiliation, and bitter resentment, as if I'd stolen something that belonged to him.

"But - " The lawyer raised his voice, cutting through the chaos, "there's one unchangeable condition attached to this inheritance."

Everyone's eyes fixed on him.

"Ms. Elena Carter, the heir, must promise never to divorce Mr. Ethan Harrison. She must also live with Ms. Margaret Harrison and Mr. Jake Harrison in their current residence until their deaths. If Ms. Carter divorces Mr. Harrison, she will forfeit all inheritance rights, and all of Mr. Robert Harrison's assets will be donated to the New York City Charitable Foundation."

My heart plummeted. I understood now.

This wasn't a gift, it was a golden cage, locking me and my future into the Harrison family's mess forever.

Robert, were you trying to protect me, or using me to keep your two worthless sons and greedy wife in line?

Chapter 3

"Hahaha!" Margaret burst into a shrill laugh. She dropped her earlier rage and smirked at me. "I get it now! Robert was afraid you'd run off with the money! Elena, hear that? You're our live-in maid! Want the money? Fine! But you'll have to wait on us hand and foot for the rest of your life! You're nothing but a paid servant!"

Ethan's expression softened slightly. He stepped forward, taking my hand. "Elena, Dad did this for our family. He didn't want us to fall apart. Don't worry, I'll let you run the house, and I'll talk to Mom and Jake."

Easy for him to say. But I knew, a long, bloodless war had already begun.

And sure enough, my home became their territory overnight.

Margaret moved into the master bedroom, the largest, sunniest room, where Ethan and I had slept. She tossed all my clothes and cosmetics into the storage room, piling them like trash.

"A married woman with a kid has no business dressing up. People will think you're a floozy! From now on, you'll sleep with Lily in her room. Got it?" She spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Ethan stood beside her, just frowning. "Elena, Mom's getting older, she needs space. And Lily's still little; she needs her mom. It's perfect."

Jake treated the place like his personal club. He brought his deadbeat friends over every night to smoke, gamble, and party, turning the house into a pigsty. They left buckets and beer cans everywhere, waiting for me to clean up after work.

Once, exhausted, I finally snapped. "Jake, you're 30 years old. Can't you act like an adult?"

Jake slammed his cards down and pointed at me. "Shut up! This house is still ours! You're just an outsider, you have no right to tell me what to do! If it weren't for Ethan, I'd punch you!"

I looked at Ethan, begging him to stand up for me.

He just pulled Jake aside and whispered, "Calm down, Jake. She's just a woman, don't waste your time arguing with her."

In that moment, I saw it clearly: Ethan's loyalty was fully with his family.

In this house, I was the outsider.

The one who had to swallow her pride, who had to "keep the peace."

All because I held the assets they craved.

Chapter 4

They thought this would break me, force me to hand over control of the inheritance.

But I didn't. I chose to wait.

Every day, I cleaned up their mess silently, endured Margaret's taunts, and watched Ethan's eyes grow colder.

I was waiting for an opportunity.

Robert Harrison had been a shrewd, tough man. He would never leave such a flawed will. Behind this document that seemed to trap me, there must be something more.

I started going through Robert's belongings.

In his study, I found a locked safe. Ethan and the others had already tried everything to open it, without luck.

But I found a clue in an old photo album he'd left me.

Tucked between the pages was a small note, written in Robert's firm handwriting: a string of numbers.

I stared at them, confused. It wasn't anyone's birthday or anniversary.

I thought about it for days, until one evening, while reading to Lily. She pointed at the world map on her wall.

"Mommy, where did Grandpa say he wanted to retire?"

A lightbulb went off. Robert had mentioned it more than once, pointing to a spot on the map. "When I retire, I'm moving there."

Ushuaia, Argentina, the southernmost city in the world.

I rushed to my laptop and looked up its coordinates.

54°48'S, 68°18'W.

Exactly the numbers on the note.

Chapter 5

Late at night, when everyone was asleep, I used the numbers to open the safe.

Inside, there were no jewels, only a stack of ledgers and a brown envelope.

I opened the envelope. It was a letter, written in Robert's hand.

"To my daughter-in-law, Elena."

"Elena, by the time you read this, I'll be gone. Forgive me for putting you in danger, but this is the only way to protect you and Lily, and to save everything I've built."

"Ethan isn't a bad man, but he's weak-willed. His mother and brother have always controlled him. If I left the company to him, they'd drain it dry in three years. If I left it to you directly, they'd destroy you to get it."

"So I had to bind you together. Let them see the prize, but never let them take it. Make them rely on you, make them fear you."

"The ledgers in the safe are Harrison Builders' 'dark books.' They detail how Margaret's family stole from the company through fake supply contracts. They show how Jake used my name to set up shell companies and siphon funds. Even Ethan, he falsified accounts and took bank loans to cover Jake's debts. All the proof is there."

"This is my real gift to you."

"You're smart, Elena, smarter and stronger than Ethan. I know you'll use this wisely. Remember: kindness and patience won't save you from wolves. You need to make them fear you. Show them you hold their fates in your hands."

"Above all, protect Lily. She's the only hope for this family."

The last page was stained with a single tear, yellowed with age.

I clutched the letter, tears streaming down my face.

The stern, even slightly patriarchal man I'd known had secretly laid out a dangerous, yet perfect path for me.

I wiped my tears. The last trace of weakness vanished from my eyes.

Robert, I won't let you down.

I'll use this inheritance, not just to survive, but to uproot the rot that's eaten away at this family for years.